Dal Makhani (Black Lentils with Rich Tomato Sauce)

A popular Indian recipe made from whole black lentils simmered in a rich tomato sauce with spices and butter – dal makhani is one of the most delicious lentil dishes you will ever eat!

Some might tell you that the point of half marathon running is for exercise, fitness, health, this super awesome adrenaline rush that hits you after you finish the race and makes you feel like a very sore million bucks.

And yes, those are all well and good, and excellent reasons to run half marathons.

But what it’s really all about is spending 13.1 miles thinking about what you are going to eat when you are done.

And then eating it.

There is very little in life that is more satisfying.

I generally spend most half marathons thinking about all the ways I can trash up breakfast so that it is really dessert, but this weekend’s 13.1 through Brooklyn was all about the dal.

Maybe my muscles were crying out for protein or perhaps my subconscious remembered that I am running another half marathon this coming weekend and needed the healing, anti-inflammatory effects of ginger and turmeric.

But dal it was, and dal I had to have.

Not even dal with ice cream on top.

Just dal. Plain and simple.

And by plain and simple, I obviously mean dal with all the spices and a hint of butter.

Because I did just run 13.1 miles, after all. And that deserves a little celebratory indulgence.

Dal, for those of you who don’t know, is essentially a lentil stew. It is a classic Indian dish usually made from split lentils, which tend to fall apart during cooking and turn into a big bowl of delicious mush.

This dal, however, is made with a combination of black lentils, which can hold their shape under pressure, and adzuki beans, which give a great textual contrast to the dish.

Most dals I’ve had from restaurants are fairly lackluster, but this one is so rich in flavor that you will be tempted to never order take-out again.

Not to mention the fact that I’m fairly sure it cured all of my post-race sore leg woes.

Running tradition in the making? You betcha. So long as I can occasionally get a bowl of ice cream on the side. Or on top. No judgment.

Pour the tomatoes, vegetable broth, and tomato pasta into the pot, along with the cooked beans and lentils. Bring to a boil and then simmer until thickened, about 15 minutes. Season to taste with salt and black pepper. Remove the bay leaf, cinnamon stick, and cardamom pods from the pot.

Stir in the butter and milk until combined. Serve warm, over rice or with naan.

I’m always planning recipes while I run. The problem is that immediately after running I just need food NOW so anything that takes more than 5 minutes is out of the question…
I am crazy for anything with lentils and this looks divine!

Nothing I love more than lentils, Joanne. I made a lentil dish a while back that copied baked beans…one of my more reposted recipes. This has the same look about it, but with way better flavors. Really must try it….looks like a great picnic dish.

Congrats on another half! I did a 40 minute run the other day, which is not something I should do very often because of my knee, but I must say I miss, miss, miss the long distance running. I love all the exercises I do, but there’s something about spending a long time running that you don’t get with any other type of activity. I confess to dreaming about doing a half, since the full is out of question now. But even that could be too much. Oh, well

I might have to settle for a heavy P90X workout and then a bowl of this beautiful lentil concoction!

Sounds amazing! Photos look so good too! We only started eating Indian dishes at friends dinner parties. Very different, but delicious! If you say its most delicious – we’ll take your word for it! Have a great week!

This looks great! My husband is an avid marathon runner and definitely runs to eat. I have been unable to return to running since a broken ankle last summer (boo!) but I get to ride on his coat tails in the post-marathon indulgence! By black lentils do you mean beluga lentils or the bigger urad dahl that look kind of like adzuki beans but black?

Girl you are a running machine! Way to go!!! And this dish looks so great. I have just recently gotten into Indian food, and I’m obsessed. I want to start cooking it, so I’ve been stocking up on the spices. Can’t wait to try this recipe!

Have it say, black lentils are my absolute favourite dhal. Dhal makhani is typically creamy so it’s interesting to see your light twist. I’ve never mixed black lentils and aduki beans but I do like the idea of it! X

Ha! I know I would be the same way if I ran half marathons. Heck, I’m pretty much dreaming of what I’m going to eat next even when I’m NOT running half marathons. This would be a great reward just for waking up in the morning. 🙂

congrats on the half marathon – that is a well deserved dal though if I ran a marathon mine would have some cream in it because the dal makhani recipe I know and love has cream in it and it is so rich and good though I think I have done it with yoghurt too.

Half marathons back to back? You need dal and ice cream Joanne! This looks like a gorgeous way to get in the first – and I am not sure I’ve ever had black lentils. I’m now keen to seek them out, and make this.

Hahah, I hate running, but when I did used to do it I always thought about food during my runs 🙂 The whole point of exercising is so you can eat more, right??! This sounds and looks so delicious. Now if I can just remember to soak the lentils/beans ahead of time…and convince my husband to eat this.

Dal Makhani is my favorite Indian dish! I decided to cut to the chase and order the beans and lentils from Amazon, since they’re hard to find around here. I’m anticipating a delicious Indian meal sometime this week. Now all I have to do is figure out how to make vegetable samosas!

Dal is my FAVORITE. For real. We usually make the Manjula’s Kitchen version–you should try it the next time you want dal! (The “green pepper” in the ingredient list should actually be jalapeno or serrano, as you can see if you watch the video.) That said, I am always up for trying out a new version, and yours sounds fabulous! SO GOOD.

Wow! I’m so impressed with all your half marathon running! I run a few miles here and there and feel proud of myself, but never 13 miles. You definitely deserve some ice cream 🙂 I’m not familiar with Dal, but the photos really remind me of chilli, which I love, so I know I would love this dish!

I made the dal, Joanne. I could not find black lentils, so I used yellow, and I used black beans for the beans, but otherwise, made the recipe according to your directions. It was so good. Much better than the dal recipe I had used previously. It was just the right amount of heat for me. The spices are so good together. The list of ingredients may look long, but it is mostly the spices that make it so, and they go in quickly.

Joanne, I finally got around to making this yesterday, and it was fantastic! My husband and daughter both felt that it was better than our local Indian restaurant’s dal makhani. We had enough left for another meal, so I decided to freeze it and see how that works. Thanks again for another recipe that will be in our dinner rotation!

Do you have any suggestions for substituting canned lentils and beans? I mean, aside from not doing it. 🙂 I want to make this for dinner tonight and don’t have time to soak the beans overnight. Would it be a can of lentils and a can of beans?

The lentils don’t actually NEED to be soaked and if you just cook them like rice, they should be done in about 15-20 minutes. You could also do a quick soak where you put the lentils and beans in a pot, cover with water, bring to a boil and let sit for an hour. That’s about the same as soaking overnight.

However, you can totally use canned beans and yes it would be a can for each of them. Enjoy!

I made this for dinner last night and it was fantastic! I couldn’t find fenugreek or black lentils at my grocery store, so I used green lentils and skipped the fenugreek. My husband and I loved it and will definitely make it again. When I was cooking it, he walked into the kitchen and said, “It smells like something I’ve never experience before.” I think it was probably the cardamom that he was smelling.

I’m going to try this. My main experience with dal is with masoor dal where I want total mush. I have read that if you salt the water in which the lentils are cooked, it prevents them from softening, which is not desirable in the masoor case. Here you cook the lentils and beans with a big pinch of salt added, and I was wondering if that is about flavor or about texture?

The salt was for flavor! I personally have not found that salt affects the texture of beans very much, but adds a lot to their flavor so I always cook them in it. In this particular dal, you use black lentils which are much heartier than red lentils and will definitely not turn to mush. This is one of my favorite Indian dishes, though, and I highly recommend it!

Made this for dinner last night and it was AMAZING! I left out the beans, since mr husband doesn’t eat them, and I was still skeptical if he would eat it….(I’m vegan, he’s omnivore…) He went back for seconds! Only other sub I did was to carmelize the onions without any oil, then deglaze with a little water. This is my favorite dal, I will be making this a lot!

The adzuki beans take twice as long to cook as the black lentils with equal soaking time. Made for a frustrating experience. Next time I would omit the adzuki. Not sure why that wasn’t accounted for in the recipe.